Against Our Odds
by Muffinale
Summary: This is a story about a family during the apocalypse. My friend and I are writing it together. Please give us reviews so we know how to make it better! Also, you can submit characters to me via PMing me, and I might include them(maybe as a survivor later on in the series, or a walker that Xander has to kill).
1. Chapter 1

**This is just the introduction to the new story. Sorry that it's really short!**

Janelle reached for the water, her hand slipping. Her body was achy and weak. This virus had taken over and there wasn't much time left. She could feel it. She coughed, a loud wet cough, and there was blood there. She knew the cure wouldn't be found before she passed. When she had been bitten, she had her husband take their three kids from the house. She wondered how they were. She hoped that Kate's cold had dried up, and that Xander would stop bothering his brother. She was alone now. But it was peaceful. A light afternoon breeze was coming through the window, drying her sweaty skin. She hoped she'd go to heaven. Her eyes slowly closed, and with one last shuddering breath, she died.


	2. Chapter 2

The door rattled loudly, abruptly waking Kate from her not-so-peaceful slumber. It was still dark out. She stood up, and rubbed her eyes. Her back was extremely sore. _I guess the floor isn't such a great place to sleep is it... _she thought. She crawled over to her father, who was zoning in and out of sleep, while watching the door. She coughed, and then tapped her arm. "Dad?" She nudged his arm. She yanked his shirt. "Daad?" His eyes slowly opened, and he grabbed his pistol off the ground and aimed it straight at her head, still half asleep.

"Dad! It's me, Kate!" She slightly shouted. She lowered her voice a little too late. The dead were getting restless outside of the house. Her dad quickly put the gun to his side again.

"Sorry honey." He whispered gently, and hugged her. His eyes quickly turned to the door. They shattered a window, and the sound of breaking glass woke Xander, the eldest of the children. The wood started to break on the door. The lock keeping the door closed broke, and cold, dead hands reached through the crack in the door, widening it farther and farther. "Quick, move, move!"

Xander shook his brother, Max, awake. He grabbed his pistol and slung their backpack over his shoulder. He then picked up Kate. "Max, wake u-" The door shook, then flew open. The dead came stumbling in, moaning and alerting the others that they had access to their meal.

"Go, go!" Their dad screamed. Max jumped up, but not fast enough, and a walker bit him from behind. Their father shot down as many walkers as he could, but ran out of ammo quickly. "Go! Get out of here!"

"I love you dad." Xander said to his father. He scooped a sobbing Kate up in his arms and sprinted out towards the back door. He shot down two walkers before he realized that Kate was attracting them with her loud cries. He covered her mouth, muffling her screams. He ran through the woods, until he found a cave with water leaking down, with could partially shroud them away from the walkers until dawn. He waded in the water until he could get into the cave, where there was a large rock, which could keep them dry.

Xander sat on the rock. He knew that they'd have to stay here until dawn, when the walkers dispersed. "Kate, you have to stay quiet, okay? And whatever you do, don't go anywhere without me, okay?" The five year old was terrified, but she nodded, her eyes welling with tears. "What? What is it?" Xander asked, clueless.

Kate looked up at her brother. "What about dad? What about Max?"

Xander shot her a mournful look, one that had been expressed when she lost all her friends, and one that had been used when they left their mother behind. She knew that look well now. It was a look that signaled the death of a loved one. She started crying again, and Xander buried her face into his chest. He started to talk, and then closed his mouth again. She sniffled and wiped her eyes. "Don't worry Katie. Everything's going to be okay. I promise." He hugged her close, fighting tears of his own, and the words_, I promise... _ringing in his head.


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey Guys! We're working on making more chapters, but I think the post rate is going to slow down a bit. You can also submit your own OC's and I'll add them in later in the story, as we want them to meet a couple of survivors where they go next. Thanks for reading!**

"Xander!" Kate screamed as she tried to shake her brother awake with all her might. In a situation like this, it sucked that her brother was a heavy sleeper. The walkers were approaching rapidly, having heard and smelled their breakfast. Their moans were resonating against the rocks and striking fear in the five year old's heart. "Xander!" Kate tried once again, this time pulling his hair.

Xander woke up screaming and pushed Kate behind him. He pulled out his gun and aimed it where he suspected the first walker to emerge from the cascade of water, coming from the cave roof. "Kate, cover your ears!" He shot the first walker down, and then, with enough time, opened his backpack and pulled out a knife. They would attract more of them and waste ammo if he continued shooting them down. The next walker stumbled into the cave, moaning and groaning loudly. He jumped off the rock and stabbed the walker clean through the eye, almost injuring himself in the process.

A couple others came and he dealt with them as needed. After they were gone, Kate ran to her brother, and hugged him tightly. Xander ruffled her hair and picked her up. Kate slapped him in the face with her pudgy little fingers. "Next time, wake up when I tell you." Xander smiled.

"Fine," he said, "next time, try harder." And with that, they left cave, wet with murky water, and Xander covered in blood, not a single drop his own. He checked his watch, and it seemed to be performing accurately. "Eight o'clock. Do you always wake up this early?" Xander asked Kate with a questioning face, and in response, she shrugged. He looked at her clothes, and then at his. "We should put some dry clothes on. The last thing we need is for one of us to get sick."

* * *

After searching meticulously through the bag for clothes that might fit Kate, he took out a pair of her jeans, one of Max's shirts, and her old jacket, which was far too small. They'd planned on going school shopping for them, especially since Xander was going into high school, but then the virus came. He handed them to her, stacked neatly.

She complained by saying, "Ew. This is a boy shirt. And my old, gross sweater." She made a face.

"Well, it's the only thing we have." Xander responded.

"Fine. Look away." She hid behind a rock and got dressed, and so did Xander. His clothes were tight, but he may have been better off like that.

"We should get a map. There's a store down the trail..." Xander mumbled to himself quietly. Kate looked up at him, waiting for him to tell her something. He pointed to the trail. "We have to go down this trail to get to a store, okay? I can carry you when you get tired." Kate nodded, her eyes glassy from a rough night's sleep and crying.


	4. Chapter 4

**HEY GUYS! I am so sorry I haven't updated in a while! I was at sleepaway camp for two weeks. I guess I forgot to tell you. Anyways, without further ado, here is the next chapter!**

It was already getting dark before Xander realized they had another couple of miles. They were probably going to have to worry about walkers soon. In the mountains like this, he wasn't worried about too many, but he didn't think he could take more than four while defending Kate. He started to pick up the pace a little, a light jog. He had maybe another thirty minutes until there would be no sunlight. "Kate, we're going to have to run. We don't have a lot of time left to get to the store, okay?"

Kate started running alongside him. "Okay." She wouldn't be able to go very fast or far. She was only five after all.

Ten minutes passed in silence, and Xander hadn't seen any walkers yet. They'd gone about one mile, but he'd needed to stop and pick up Kate, because she was slowing down, and becoming tired. He hoped the store wasn't locked. Or that there were a bunch of walkers everywhere. He'd have to lock himself somewhere if there were. Maybe in an electrical closet. Somewhere with a metal door. He tripped over a root, and stumbled. A sharp pain ran up his ankle. "Not good, not good..." He picked himself up a little and tried to run, but every footfall hurt. Maybe it was better this way. Maybe it was a sign that the store wasn't safe. Maybe he should wait until morning. There was a storm shelter not too far back on the hiking trail. Maybe he could go there.

* * *

Nightfall had arrived, and he'd made it back to the little shelter. It was small, and cramped, but there were some batteries, and a blanket. It was made of wood, and twice the size of an outhouse. He knew he probably couldn't sleep. Not with how his ankle felt. When there was light, he'd have to inspect it. But not now. He held his sister close and covered her, and himself, with the tiny fleece blanket.

For now, traveling would have to wait.


End file.
